Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2012

On 31 January 2012, the State Party submitted a detailed report on the state of conservation of IguazuNational Park. The report addresses the following issues raised by the World Heritage Committee in Decision 34 COM 7B.30:

a) Transboundary cooperation and coordination of management

At its 34th session, the World Heritage Committee was informed by the State Party of Brazil of the impending signature of an international cooperation agreement designed to facilitate transboundary cooperation on park management with Iguazu National Park in Argentina, another World Heritage property immediately across the Iguazu River. The State Party makes no reference to that agreement in its current report, though it indicates that there is increased transboundary cooperation, as evidenced by the joint publication of a pamphlet on visitor facilities at both properties. The report notes that a joint review of Management Plans, progress on which was requested by the Committee, was not possible at this time, given that the Argentinian plan had been developed in 1988 and required an immediate revision, whereas the Brazilian plan had only recently been finalized and there was little scope for revision at this point. The report notes that the Inter-American Development Bank has provided funding to support the revision of the property’s Management Plan. Based on the information provided, the World Heritage Centre and IUCN consider that there appears to have been very little progress in strengthening transboundary cooperation in the management of the two properties, and that plans for stronger cooperation expressed earlier have not come to fruition.

b) Hydroelectric dams and additional infrastructure plans

The State Party’s report includes a lengthy hydrographic study on the impacts on river water flow at the falls from the series of hydroelectric dams constructed upstream on the Iguazu River. It concludes that there was a measurable reduction in both the extreme low water and high water events. The nearest and most recent dam (Caixa – built in 1999) is 200 km upstream from the falls. The study indicates that the dam’s distance, and the fact that the river downstream from the dam flows in large part through protected areas (from which other tributaries flow into the river), contributes significantly to the attenuation of any potentially negative impacts from the dam on water quality and flow. The study seems to discredit earlier claims of a weekly variation in flow due to weekend closure of the dam’s sluice gates. The State Party’s report indicates that there are no plans for any hydroelectric dam construction that may affect the property on the Argentinian side, though it appears from internet based reports that the Corpus Christi hydroelectric dam project, located approximately 250 km downstream from the property, but having an unknown impact on water levels at the property, is still being considered. Similarly, recent media reports suggest that consideration of the Baixo Iguaçu Hydroelectric project on the Brazilian side in the immediate vicinity of the property is renewed. The report on the state of conservation of IguaçuNational Park (Brazil) further discusses this issue.

The State Party notes the presence of a long existing dirt road running through the property, indicating that it may one day be subjected to pressure to have it paved, though appears to indicate that no such pressure currently exists.

c) Biodiversity conservation

The State Party lists several ecological research projects currently underway in the property, though no specific relation between these studies and management interventions are noted. It states that the detailed biodiversity report submitted to the World Heritage Centre in 2009 indicated that overall conservation of the property was good, and that this conclusion remains valid. Main biodiversity threats are identified as those emanating from the presence of mostly aquatic introduced species, and particular concern is raised over river bank ecosystems. No additional information is provided on the threat of agricultural development in the Argentine Peninsula Bottleneck, a stretch of privately owned land in Argentina that is a key biological corridor between the two properties, as noted by the 2008 reactive monitoring mission. At the Committee’s 34th session, the World Heritage Centre and IUCN had noted that deforestation in the Argentine Peninsula Bottleneck is increasingly limiting genetic flows between certain species’ populations, including jaguars, which results in shifts in forest ecosystem dynamics, and should therefore be monitored by both States Parties.

Analysis and Conclusion by World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in 2012

The World Heritage Centre and IUCN note the on-going absence of meaningful progress in regards to formal transboundary cooperation. Ideally, these two distinct properties, which are similar in many ways, should be considered as one single property under the Convention. In the absence of this situation, it is incumbent upon the respective States Parties of Argentina and Brazil to enhance transboundary management cooperation, through formal international agreements under which joint work plans could be regularly developed, implemented and monitored. Hydroelectric dams play a large role in water flow through this property, and continued monitoring of their impacts, along with that of plans for new dam projects is required. The mention of introduced species as a new threat to the property’s Outstanding Universal Value should be carefully monitored and appropriate conservation action taken.

Decisions adopted by the Committee in 2012

Adopted

Draft Decision

36 COM 7B.28

Iguazu National Park (Argentina) (N 303)

3. Regrets that little progress has been made in formalizing and operationalizing transboundary cooperation with the neighbouring Iguaçu National Park World Heritage property in Brazil, despite having been informed by the State Party of Brazil at its 34th session that the signing of such an agreement was imminent;

4. Reiterates its request that the State Party of Argentina, in cooperation with the State Party of Brazil, formalize transboundary cooperation through appropriate international instruments, under which site based cooperation can be structured, implemented and monitored;

5. Takes note of the hydrographical report on water flows in the Iguazu River, and recommends the State Party of Argentina, in cooperation with the State Party of Brazil, to continue river flow monitoring so that informed discussions with the managers of the Caxias dam can ensure the safeguarding of the property’s Outstanding Universal Value;

6. Reminds the State Party that, as per Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, any intention to undertake or authorize infrastructure works likely to impact on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value should be communicated to the World Heritage Centre;

7. Also notes the concerns raised by the State Party over the incipient threats caused by alien species in the property, and urges it in coordination with the State Party of Brazil to engage in a concerted effort to ensure that this issue receives the appropriate level of management attention;

8. Requests the State Party of Argentina, in cooperation with the State Party of Brazil, to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2014, a single joint report on the state of conservation of the property, including special consideration on advances in cooperation, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

Draft Decision: 36 COM 7B.28

3. Regrets that little progress has been made in formalizing and operationalizing transboundary cooperation with the neighbouring Iguaçu National Park World Heritage property in Brazil, despite having been informed by the State Party of Brazil at its 34th session that the signing of such an agreement was imminent;

4. Reiterates its request that the State Party of Argentina, in cooperation with the State Party of Brazil, formalize transboundary cooperation through appropriate international instruments, under which site based cooperation can be structured, implemented and monitored;

5. Takes note of the hydrographical report on water flows in the Iguazu River, and recommends the State Party of Argentina, in cooperation with the State Party of Brazil, to continue river flow monitoring so that informed discussions with the managers of the Caixa dam can ensure the safeguarding of the property’s Outstanding Universal Value;

6. Reminds the State Party that, as per Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, any intention to undertake or authorize infrastructure works likely to impact on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value should be communicated to the World Heritage Centre;

7. Also notes the concerns raised by the State Party over the incipient threats caused by alien species in the property, and urges it in coordination with the State Party of Brazil to engage in a concerted effort to ensure that this issue receives the appropriate level of management attention;

8. Requests the State Party of Argentina, in cooperation with the State Party of Brazil, to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2014, a single joint report on the state of conservation of the property, including special consideration on advances in cooperation, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

* :
The threats indicated are listed in alphabetical order; their order does not constitute a classification according to the importance of their impact on the property.
Furthermore, they are presented irrespective of the type of threat faced by the property, i.e. with specific and proven imminent danger (“ascertained danger”) or with threats which could have deleterious effects on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (“potential danger”).